AUCHTERARDER dog breeder Deely Cumming has had her hands full recently after her Tibetan Mastiff, Flora, gave birth to six puppies.
Pedigree pups Lily, Socks, Fauna, Choo, Wilma and Flint are the first of their kind to be born in Strathearn, making their appearance on St Andrew’s Day.
Speaking about the ancient rare breed of dog, Deely said: “The Tibetan Mastiff is a breed virtually untampered with and is considered to be the basic stock from which most modern large working breeds have developed, i.e. Bernese, Newfoundlands, St Bernards, etc.
“It is one of the oldest pure bred dogs known. In its native land the Tibetan Mastiff has three main functions - guardian of the home, the herds and the caravans of the nomads and the traders.
“They are a sociable, fun-loving, playful breed with great displays of affection and exuberance.”
Four of the pups have already found good homes but the dedicated dog lover is keeping two so now her collection of rare large breed dogs stands at 13 - seven Bernese Mountain Dogs, four Tibetans and two Anatolians.
Another of Deely’s dogs is also raising the profile of rare breeds around Britain.
Prize winning pooch Freya, a young Anatolian Karabash, has won Top Puppy and Top Rare Breed in the Pastoral Group in a competition sponsored by OurDogs magazine and will be presented with a crystal bowl at Crufts in March.
